Earlier this year the United Arab Emirates (UAE), one of the blockading nations, filed a complaint against Qatar at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for allegedly blocking the entry of Emirati products into Qatari markets.
Following this, Qatar reminded the WTO that it was UAE that had barred the movement of goods between the two nations resulting from severed sea, land, or air contact under the illegal siege.
Now, in the latest development and a strong win for Qatar, the country has announced that its permanent mission to the WTO has been formally informed that UAE had withdrawn its complaint against Qatar.
دولة قطر تكسب دعوى قضائية بعد سحب الإمارات شكواها المرفوعة ضدها بشأن بعض التدابير القطرية المزعومة أمام منظمة التجارة العالمية في جنيف.#قنا
— وكالة الأنباء القطرية (@QatarNewsAgency) August 9, 2019
Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs pointed in a statement Friday that the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation released a statement confirming that the UAE formally withdrew from their case.
According to the statement, the UAE's failure in advancing this dispute demonstrates that the allegations made against Qatar were false and baseless.
The statement underlined that the UAE's decision to withdraw its complaint so soon after initiating this dispute confirms that Qatar has, and continues to, uphold and comply with its obligations under the WTO.
"Evidently, the UAE had no arguments or evidence to show otherwise, as such, the UAE has formally withdrawn their complaint before the initiation of any adjudication by a WTO Panel," the statement added.
The statement reiterated that Qatar has previously drawn attention to the fact that the inability of UAE goods to enter the Qatari market is solely due to the trade-restrictive measures imposed by the UAE, leading to the suffering of many UAE companies.
The continued export of gas to the UAE is a clear example of how Qatar upholds and respects its international obligations, the statement emphasized.
Statement : #Qatar prevails over the UAE in trade dispute at the #WTOhttps://t.co/Di1G2hCljC#MOFAQatar pic.twitter.com/Wx8jug9ooI
— MOFA - Qatar (@MofaQatar_EN) August 9, 2019
However, Qatar continues to move ahead with its complaint against the UAE's unlawful measures imposed on June 5, 2017. The UAE must withdraw its illegal trade-restrictive measures, the statement added.
It also pointed out that a WTO panel is currently reviewing the claims brought by Qatar and will issue a binding report soon.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs further stated that Qatar will leave no stones unturned in pursuing its legal rights, across all international forums, to ensure the withdrawal of the UAE's unlawful measures against the country.
While Qatar is fully compliant with WTO obligations, it will continue to foster a stable and predictable trading environment for its economic partners around the world, MOFA added.
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